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“Ugh.” Gasping, his vision blurred for a moment, but he managed to breathe through it.
“You talk a big game for a shithead hanging by his wrists,” Brute grumbled.
Tanner coughed, spitting out some blood before raising his head defiantly. “Yeah, my friends all say I talk too much, but since you’re nothing but a mindless thug with a false sense of power, I didn’t think you’d appreciate it. You don’t scare me, fuckwit. All you know is how to throw your weight around, and that’s the epitome of patheticism.”
The flash of evil in Brute’s eyes warned Tanner that he was dancing dangerously close to the edge. The same voice in the back of his head screamed at him to shut up, to stop provoking the man who had him at his mercy. But something had snapped inside him. He was tired of being the helpless victim, tired of watching these criminals take pleasure in others’ suffering.
Brute charged at him once more, but this time, Tanner was ready. He managed to twist his body slightly, causing Brute’s punch to graze his shoulder rather than landing a direct hit. It still stung, but it was a small victory.
Thoroughly entertained by the showmanship, the other men in the room laughed boisterously. Tanner’s provocation seemed to fuel their sadistic enjoyment. Despite his pain and exhaustion, he refused to back down.
“You’re all a bunch of pathetic losers.” Blood and saliva spat from his mouth. “You think you’re tough because you hurt people weaker than you? Well, newsflash, motherfuckers. Real strength is about protecting, not destroying. Then again, you wouldn’t understand that because you’re all just a bunch of cowards.”
He knew he was pushing his luck, but Tanner was past the point of caring. The world around him seemed to blur as a cocktail of pain and anger surged through him from the battering of fists, now landing one after the other.
“Time to shut you up,gringo,” Brute snarled as his face contorted with rage. He raised his fist once more to deliver a devastating blow, but before he could strike, the door swung open with a bang.
Tanner must be on the verge of passing out since Diego’s usual whiney voice filled the room with a commanding bellow.
“Enough.”
“No,Jefe. I’m just getting started,” Brute sneered as he pulled back his arm, ready to release another folly of hits into Tanner’s gut.
“If I wanted him dead, I would’ve said so. Get the fuck out of here and go skin a rabbit if you’re so desperate for blood. The fun here is over.”
Brute hesitated, lowering his fist reluctantly. “This is bullshit,Jefe.”
“Vete a la mierda!Out. Get the fuck out.” Diego glared at them with a gaze like daggers cutting through the tension. “Leave.Ahora!” The warning in his voice brooked no argument.
One by one, the men shuffled out of the room, leaving Tanner hanging there, battered and broken. He watched Diego warily. Over time, he had learned not to trust thugs, no matter how friendly or how much compassion they might show.
“So, are you going to break the ribs I still have that are intact, or are you going to aim for my nose?” Tanner smirked. “That might not be such a bad thing. Chicks dig a man with a slightly crooked nose. It shows I can handle a beating and don’t mind others knowing.”
Diego didn’t react with the violence he expected. Instead, he slowly circled him. The malevolent grin on his face awakened a sense of unease in Tanner.
“If there’s one thing I learned from my late father, may he rest in darkness, is to always be unpredictable. I must admit, I’m surprised you’re still alive after all the beatings and yet, here you are. That’s an unexpected complication and an inconvenience that’s wasting my time,ese. So, no. No more beatings to get you to do my bidding. Instead, I’m gonna do what guys like me do best. I’m going to hit you where it hurts the most.”
Fuck! Fuck-fuck-fuck! Well-versed in how these bastards operated, he knew what was coming. Mafia and syndicates relied on fear and terror to achieve their sinister goals, not only against their adversaries but also to maintain control within their organizations. They employed similar tactics akin to authoritarian regimes to stay in power.
When they felt wronged or had specific demands, like in Tanner’s case, they resorted to a surefire way of getting what they wanted—threatening to harm those you cared about. Once they reached that level of desperation, there was little hope left. The likes of the Jalizio Cartel didn’t make idle threats. If they had already identified the people who mattered most to him, someone would already be in position to take action.
“I dunno,amigo. I don’t think there are any spots left on my body that don’t hurt like the motherfucker.”
This time, Diego barked out a sinister laugh. “Ah, but there is one,ese. Your heart. You see, either you do what we want, or you’re going to live with a bleeding heart, crying over the gruesome death of your little brother’s brats and the guilt that you are the reason they died.” His chest seemed to grow with pride. “Yes, I might be a useless criminal in your eyes, but I’ve got contacts,ese. High up, and even though your brother and his family live way up there in Iceland, I found them.” He leaned closer. “Guess what? I already recruited very eager assassins in that area. Apparently, their home is quite secluded in the mountains. Perfect for what I have in mind.”
“You fucking bastard!” Without thought to the consequences, Tanner slammed his head forward, disregarding the blinding pain that seared through his brain at the satisfying crack resounding through the room of his forehead colliding with Diego’s.
“Touch them, and you’re a dead man!”
Diego staggered toward the door. The hit had been so hard he could hardly see straight and felt like he was about to pass out. Leaning heavily against the frame, his eyes flashed with dangerous fury as he glared at Tanner.
“You just made the biggest mistake of a lifetime,ese. Now they’ll all die, but I’ll keep you alive as a play toy for the boys. You will never walk out of here. From now on, you belong to me.”
Chapter Two
A week later…
Tanner’s body trembled, but the ground beneath him was stable. It was as if the world had shifted out of place, leaving him disoriented and confused.
